Program Manager
Long Beach, CA, United States16h ago
Free account needed to apply or save. It takes a minute, and we'll bring you right back to this job.
How well do you match this job?
Key details
- Salary
- $110K–$155K/yr
- Location
- Long Beach, CA, United States
- Work style
- Onsite
- Level
- Senior
- Job type
- Full-time
- Experience
- 3–5 yrs
- Function
- Product / Program management
- Focus area
- other
- Visa sponsorship
- US persons only (export control)
- Posted
- 16h ago
Skills
About the role
WHAT WE LOOK FOR
Mission-Driven Problem Solvers – The problems in missile defense demand ingenuity. We want engineers, technicians, and corporate professionals who approach challenges with curiosity, embrace failure as a learning opportunity, and stay focused on delivering the best solution for the mission.
Total Ownership – We seek those who take full responsibility for delivering flight-ready work while recognizing that no one succeeds alone. The best engineers, technicians, and corporate professionals make their teammates better, knowing that complementary skills create force multiplication and drive mission success.
PROGRAM MANAGER
DESCRIPTION
Long Wall is seeking a motivated and technically capable Program Manager to support the execution and growth of programs serving the U.S. Department of War (DoW) and other customers. As a key interface between Long Wall and our customers, you will support program execution, customer engagement, and technical coordination, helping keep programs on schedule, on budget, and aligned with contractual requirements.
You will work closely with Program Management leadership, engineering, contracts, and finance teams, government program offices, and industry partners, turning plans into schedules, tracking commitments through to closure, and ensuring customers receive clear, accurate information about program status. This is a hands-on role in a fast-moving environment and a direct path to building program management expertise. You will gain real experience with defense acquisition, from traditional contracting to newer, faster pathways such as Other Transaction (OT) agreements and rapid prototyping, along with government contracting and customer relationship management.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Represent Long Wall in meetings, technical discussions, program reviews, and coordination activities with U.S. Government customers, and serve as the point of contact for designated program activities
- Build and maintain professional working relationships with government program managers, contracting personnel, technical representatives, and industry partners
- Prepare and deliver program briefings, status reports, presentations, and other customer-facing materials, and drive customer action items to closure
- Support the planning, coordination, and execution of programs from contract award through delivery and closeout, working across engineering, contracts, business functions, subcontractors, and vendors
- Develop and maintain program schedules, milestones, and performance tracking tools, and track contractual deliverables, including Contract Data Requirements List (CDRL) items, to on-time completion
- Track program budgets, expenditures, and financial performance against plan in coordination with Contracts and Finance
- Monitor program performance, identify risks, scope changes, and schedule impacts, and recommend corrective actions to Long Wall leadership
- Support program reviews, technical interchange meetings, milestone reviews, and customer reporting requirements
- Partner with engineering to understand program technical objectives, support requirements and verification activities, and communicate technical progress, challenges, and proposed solutions to customers
- Build working knowledge of DoW acquisition processes and FAR/DFARS requirements, and ensure program activities comply with contractual obligations, Long Wall policies, and security and export control requirements
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Science, Systems Engineering, Business Administration, Project Management, or a related discipline
- 3 to 5 years of professional experience in program management or a similar field
REQUIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
- Genuine interest in building a career in program management, with the drive to learn quickly and take on increasing responsibility
- Strong organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills, with close attention to schedules, budgets, contractual commitments, and deliverables
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to prepare and deliver professional presentations
- Confidence and professionalism when interacting with government officials, military personnel, senior leadership, and technical stakeholders
- Ability to understand government customer priorities, represent Long Wall effectively, and build trusted, productive relationships with customers and partners
- Technical aptitude to understand complex technical programs and communicate effectively with engineering teams
- Ability to manage multiple priorities, track commitments, and meet deadlines in a dynamic, fast-moving environment
- Ownership and follow-through on assigned responsibilities, with sound judgment about which issues need management attention and how to operate within delegated authority
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Word) and Microsoft Project or a comparable scheduling tool
- U.S. citizenship and the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance
PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
- 5+ years of experience in program or project management, project coordination, systems engineering, or business operations, ideally in aerospace and defense (internships, co-ops, and military service count)
- Experience working with government program offices, military customers, or prime contractors
- Exposure to DoW acquisition pathways, such as programs of record, Other Transaction (OT) agreements, SBIR/STTR, or rapid prototyping efforts
- Familiarity with the FAR and DFARS, common contract types (e.g., firm-fixed-price, cost-plus), and contract deliverables such as CDRLs
- Experience building or maintaining integrated master schedules (IMS), or familiarity with earned value management (EVM) concepts
- Active U.S. Government security clearance (Secret or above)
- CAPM or PMP certification, or progress toward one
- Experience in a startup or fast-growing aerospace, defense, or hardware environment
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
- Ability to sit or stand for extended periods of time
- Ability to use a computer to complete assignments
- Ability to communicate with individuals and groups in person, by phone, and via telepresence
- Ability to pick up to 12lbs
- While performing the duties of this job, the employee will typically work in an office environment
- Ability to travel periodically to customer sites, government facilities, partner locations, and between Long Wall sites as required